


No Stars, Only Constellations

by Donice



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: F/F, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-09
Updated: 2019-12-09
Packaged: 2021-02-26 07:20:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,521
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21729712
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Donice/pseuds/Donice
Summary: Champ only saw stars. Waverly saw constellations.
Relationships: Waverly Earp & Champ Hardy, Waverly Earp & Gus McCready, Waverly Earp & Nicole Haught, Waverly Earp/Champ Hardy, Waverly Earp/Nicole Haught
Kudos: 79





	No Stars, Only Constellations

**Author's Note:**

> This story takes place just before Wynonna returns to Purgatory in Season 1, and before Waverly breaks up with Champ. I've tried to make it as canon to the story as possible.  
> Wynonna Earp and its characters belong to Beau Smith & Emily Andreas respectively.

It’s dark, and there’s no one else but them and the stars shining brightly within the night sky above. The soft wind billowing through the vast empty overgrown grass fields surrounding every direction making Waverly shiver involuntarily, causing goose-bumps to prickle up her arms. Above them a few remaining hues of orange from the sunset was bleeding into the dark inky purple abyss like a dash of paint splashed across the sky.

It was her idea to camp out on the Earp land after the yearly local Purgatory firework display had finished. She thought she would feel… free but instead she felt suffocated. Champ lay next to her beer can in hand. Waverly turned on her side reached over and turned on the iPod sitting on the docking station next to her, the soothing tune of her new age yoga music drifting through the speakers the sound now filling the air ending the awkward silence.

“Don’t get me wrong the sex is great, but can I ask you something first?” Waverly asked sighing wistfully, “Look up into the sky. What do you see?”

There was a pregnant pause then Champ laughed.

“I see my thick dick in your mouth,” he slurred in reply, thrusting his arm up towards the sky, drunkenly spilling half the contents of his beer over himself.

“Hey, this isn’t funny!” Waverly chastised sharply, smacking him hard on his thick thigh.

“Be real... please for once…” She pleaded softly, “What do you see up there?”

Champ screwed his eyebrows close together thinking.

“I dunno, bunch of dumb stars?” he said half sitting up and taking a long swig of his beer before settling back down on the blanket. 

Waverly sighed and lay back, her head resting comfortably on the grouped pillows laid out on the old starched blanket. She stretched out shifting slightly to avoid a rocky bit of the ground digging into her back. The light from the small old oil lamp nearby only giving off only a small amount of light, just enough to light up the side of Champ’s angular face. Her brow furrowed with the thoughts running through her mind, and her hazel eyes turned to stare up vacantly at the stars. 

“I see no stars only constellations,” she said sadly.

\-- --

The sky was a dark purple canvas dotted with billions of small shining stars twinkling like bright fairy lights. The sight never failed to take away Waverly’s breath away even after all this time. Waverly loved the stars and the stories behind them, the result of a childhood school trip to Purgatory’s local observatory. She would spend hours upon hours pouring over every book possible about the legends behind the stars above. It was partly one of the many reasons she went into studying ancient languages in the first place.

She had lied about the sex. Yes, it wasn’t terrible but it wasn’t good either… it was boring…an obligation…expected of her…  
She derived hardly any pleasure from it anymore really; in fact, it felt more invading than pleasurable if she was being honest.

The simple fact was she and Champ were just on two completely different wavelengths. But then Waverly had never really found anyone who was on the same wavelength as her, she doubted such a person could exist in a place like Purgatory.

Champ was…safe.

He was loud and boisterous and stupid and he frankly couldn’t give two shits whether she was an Earp or not as long as she had nice legs and was willing to fuck him. That was all she needed, someone who didn’t care about her family’s past discretions, someone who made her feel …normal.

She remembered back when she was sixteen and in high school. Back when he first asked her out. She had said no at first mainly because she wasn’t really that attracted to him. Sure he was tall, muscular, and somewhat boyishly good looking but everyone knew he had the intelligence of a potato, and there was something else missing from him that she couldn’t quite put her finger on.  
But she let everyone believe that his boyish charms eventually wore away at her.  
In reality she was tired… Tired of always having to be the ‘normal’ Earp, Tired of always being forgotten by her family, Tired of always being left behind.

Everyone in her life had left her; first Mama, then Daddy and Willa even Wynonna in the end. 

The truth was she was lonely. Just like the stars.

\-- --

Her thoughts turned to her first kiss. Everyone thought it was Champ but this wasn’t true. Her first kiss had actually been Chrissy Nedley.

She was twelve when it happened; she had been hanging out at Chrissy’s house after school as she usually did. Chrissy was the only kid at school who didn’t make fun of her for coming from, “a family full of psycho’s” or pitied her for being the only ‘normal’ Earp.  
Champ had locked poor Chrissy in a porta-loo again and Waverly had rescued her again kicking him in the balls in the process for good measure.

They had been laughing about the incident all the way back to her house. Talking about how dumb boys were.

“Thanks again Waves,” Chrissy said as they sat on her bed, “For rescuing me from Champ, It’s about time someone stood up to that bully.”

“I wasn’t doing anything special, I just don’t like it when people pick on others,” Waverly said, “I’m not like some superhero or anything.” 

_No that would be Wynonna now that Willa was gone she supposed…_ She tried hard not to resent her sister for it but it was difficult at times. Waverly had never been ‘the special one.’  
Her family had never cared much for her. Her eldest sister Willa and her father had hated her for reasons she couldn’t even fathom. Her father couldn’t even remember when her birthday was whilst he was still alive. As for Wynonna, well she loved her but she was also troubled, an effect caused by the trauma of their sister and father’s deaths and thus she had left her time and again. These days Wynonna was in and out of psychiatric hospitals, foster homes, and Juvenile prison that much that Waverly barely saw her at all. It was as though she was never there. It left Waverly feeling deserted and alone.

“Well you’re my hero,” Chrissy said smiling happily bringing Waverly back out of her thoughts.

Waverly laughed.

Chrissy laughed too… Then she stopped. She was looking directly into Waverly’s eyes with…something…a look…she could not decipher. Then she felt soft sweet lips against hers, and then almost as quickly they were gone.

Waverly reached up gently to touch her lips transfixed. Meanwhile, Chrissy giggled softly her cheeks turning slightly pink.

Years later they would laugh about it, it was obvious to Waverly the kiss hadn’t meant anything special to Chrissy. For her, it had been just a flash of curiosity in an emotionally charged atmosphere.

But it had meant something to Waverly.

That thought alone scared her.

\-- --

Waverly thought back to the fireworks in the town centre earlier that evening. 

The fireworks crackled and popped, exploding into various colours, red, green, orange, blue that blended in with the wispy, colourless smoke, a result of the left over remnants once the fireworks burnt out, and the loud chirping of the crickets. The whole town of Purgatory was there. Waverly loved the fireworks, the sharp, acrid smell of burning gunpowder taking her back to every bonfire night she’d been to as a child, the colours popping in the sky illuminating the small town, casting light over the otherwise dark square. It cast light over one person in particular. Deputy Sherriff Nicole Haught. Stood in the crowd next to Sherriff Nedley her eyes engrossed on the firework display, it seemed she was off for the evening and she had her long beautiful ginger hair down, she looked gorgeous.

Almost like she could sense Waverly’s gaze upon her, Nicole turned her head, her eyes locking with Waverly’s a look passed between them, Nicole smiled, she had such a big, beautiful smile. The sexual tension could almost be cut with a knife.  
Then Champ drunkenly stumbled over with all the elegance of an ape and ruined the moment throwing his arm around Waverly completely oblivious to what was happening in front of him.

“Hey babe,” He slurred drunkenly oblivious to the stumble and slur of every letter that left his lips. His bright white porcelain-like teeth breaking free from the enclosure of his slimy smile

He began kissing her cheek sloppily leaving a trail of saliva across her cheek. Waverly sighed he always picked the wrong moment, _**always.**_ She finally managed to brush him off, wiping her cheek as she did and looked back only to find Nicole had disappeared into the crowd.  
Sheriff Nedley himself turned towards Waverly shooting her a sad tight smile his eyes meeting hers conveying an understanding between them before he tipped his hat and turned back to the fireworks and putting his arm around his daughter.

For some reason it made her feel sad.

\-- --

“At first, the stars were just random shit in the sky,” Waverly continued despite Champs' obvious disinterest. “Everyone saw, like, a boot, or a triangle, or an ox…but then one day Zeus cursed the stars to be stories.” 

“Cassiopeia was queen of Ethiopia then Zeus chained her to her throne. She died on it. Pegasus was Zeus’ winged horse. Then Zeus clipped his wings. He died there in the sky. Andromeda was princess of Ethiopia. Then Perseus forced her to marry him. She died alone. The great bear guarded the forest then the hunter Orion cut out her heart and ate it.” Waverly recounted, listing the stories off in procession almost getting lost in them as she spoke reliving the memories of being in the planetarium as a child, the stories to her were like old friends they kept her company.

\-- --

Nicole Haught was something else.

From the minute she walked into Shorty’s Saloon Waverly had felt the electricity fill the air. How could she not?

Tall, hot, red-head cop with a flirty grin, it was every man’s and dare she say even some women’s wet dream.

She should have known she was doomed right from that very moment.

In the time since then Waverly had learnt a lot about Nicole, her courage, her kindness and willingness to listen, she had become more than just a ‘hot cop in a uniform’. She had become…a friend, a confidant, dare she say a salvation.

She had ignited something in Waverly, something that had been buried and forgotten about a long time ago. A desire, a longing, a want that burned so much she felt like she could cry.

It scared Waverly.

She scared Waverly.

\-- --

“Every constellation is dead. Space has always been a graveyard,” Waverly said rather bitterly then she turned to face Champ, “Ever heard of the Fermi Paradox?”

“Fermi Paradox? That’s my new nickname for your Vagina,” Champ said with a hint of flirtation in his voice, his hand reaching for her thigh. She pushed him away. Not tonight.

“That would also make a great pornstar name,” Champ continued laughing seemingly too inebriated to be bothered by her rejection.

Waverly sighed _why did she even bother?_ She turned back to the sky, once again returning to her thoughts. 

“Even the stars look lonely now,” Waverly muttered more to herself than Champ.

There was a silence again, as Waverly returned to her thoughts, why did she bother with Champ again? And more importantly, was it worth it? Wynonna had left a hole in her life she desperately tried to fill but should she really just settle for Champ? Was it always just going to be like this? The constant cheating was bad enough. But more than that, he seemed to have no depth to him at all. Did he even care about her needs and interests? _“is there something there, or am I wasting my time trying to find out?"_  
Waverly didn’t know but she could hazard a guess that it never crossed his mind, and that hurt more than anything.  


\-- --

Aunt Gus and Uncle Curtis were the best surrogate parents she could ask for. They knew they could never replace her birth parents, but they made sure Waverly was taken good care of and had a damned stable childhood after all as Aunt Gus once declared:  
_“Hasn’t the kid been through enough already?”_

They were better than her parents in her view, they never abandoned her, and always looked after her, they were the ones who tucked her up in bed at night and read her bedtime stories, looked after her when she was sick, and they never forgot her birthday and Curtis even paid for her college fee’s with the Open University which enabled her to get her degrees in Ancient languages and history, even despite Gus grumbling it was way too expensive for them to afford.

Waverly had so many fantastic memories; Curtis teaching her how to play the piano in Shorty’s bar at the weekend before opening time, Gus teaching her how to use a shotgun, trips out to the fairground on Bank Holidays, the wild and fantastic birthday parties.

In a way, it was also somewhat sad that most of her good memories were with her aunt and uncle, rather than her mum and dad. But Waverly was strong, mentally and emotionally. She supposed it also helped that she was probably so young when her mum left, and her dad and sister died; she was able to cope with the trauma, unlike Wynonna.

Growing up, Gus was her go-to person for advice. Friendship troubles, Boyfriend troubles, general worries. Waverly always appreciated Gus’s sage advice, she was a wise woman, she always cut through the bullshit, and got straight into the heart of the issue.

She remembered a conversation she had with Gus when she started dating Champ…

\-- --

They were in a closed Shorty’s. Gus stood at one of the keg pumps, pulling the water through the lines in order to clean the pump. Waverly stood just behind. She had been helping her by turning off the remote, checking the cellar buoy, handing over the cleaning solution, and filling up buckets of tepid water to run through the lines, to flush out the cleaning fluid, a process she had done herself many times.

She may not be quite old enough to work in the pub yet, but Shorty let her help Gus out in the closing hours, and promised her she could have a proper job there once she turned eighteen.

She supposed now was a good a time as any to let Gus know her and Champ were a thing.

_“Of all the people in this town you’re dating Champ Hardy?” Gus drawled her eyebrows raised in surprise. “Champ Hardy the teenage rodeo star? Champ Hardy, the guy you used to kick in the balls in middle school for bullying girls?”_

_“He’s changed now,” Waverly said defensively, “…And he’s cute, and he’s been asking me out for ages so I figured why not give him a chance?”_

_Gus sighed and threw the towel over her shoulder before turning to face Waverly._

_“I know you don't believe me, but you were not born to be a goddamn small-town hick, and I tell ya that’s exactly what Champ is…” Gus ranted “…But I get it, he’s a fairly handsome guy and there aren’t many options in this town… But one day when you decide you're ready to unstick those wings of yours, you’ll realise you’re worth so much more than him…”_

_Waverly pouted and remained quiet._

_“You put on a brave face kid, but you forget I know you…” She continued, “You always put on a smile and pretend you’re ok even when you’re not. I know it’s been tough, you’ve been through a lot, more than anyone should have to go through. Just…be careful ok honey. Don’t throw your whole life away over some dumb boy, just because you feel stuck.”_

_“I won’t Aunt Gus, I promise I’ll be careful,” Waverly promised softly._

_“Good!” Gus said, “You have too much going for you to throw it away. Don’t squander it. You've been doing what others want you to do for so long. It’s time you should do whatever it is you want.”_

_“Which is what?” Waverly asked confused._

_“Live your life as you want to, not how everyone expects you to. Remember: some of the best things in life are the surprises it throws us. About what we want. Who we want,” She winked, “You've always been an honest kid. Don't stop now.”_

Maybe Gus was right, maybe for once she should go after what she wants. Who she wants. And she was sure it wasn’t Champ…  


\-- --

“There’s like a 100 billion, billion planets that can support life. So why don’t aliens contact Earth? Why are the stars so quiet?” Waverly enquired quietly breaking the silence once again.

“The Aliens are already here…in my butt,” Champ said wiggling his bum against the starchy blanket a wide grin on his face.

_She was getting tired of this…_

“Ok maybe, but there’s one other possibility too…maybe there are no aliens. Maybe we’re all alone. Like when I look up there, I don’t see anything anymore. Stars, shapes, aliens… What’s the difference anyway? We just see whatever we want to see – in stars, in people…” Waverly rambled on unable to hold back her emotion any longer.

There was a pregnant pause. The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Then Waverly laughed, a relieved fed up laugh and said in her usual chirpy manner:

“Oh, yikes, I guess I totally drank way too much!” 

She sat up. There was a small pause then she laughed again and softly mumbled:  
“Well, um, anyway, I gotta go pee. I’ll be back soon.”

She got to her feet and trudged off into the long grass and out of sight.

She didn’t return. 

She left Champ alone in the long overgrown grass, and walked the long way back to the homestead.  
She guessed he must have fallen into a drunken slumber as he waited for her to return, since she found him still asleep there when she went to collect her blanket and iPod dock the very next day.

This had been the last chance for her and Champ to save whatever little thread of their relationship was left, or maybe it was already over by this point and this was the final catalyst she needed to make her realise she and him weren’t compatible.  
Whichever one it was, she had made her decision.  
Not too long after this she ended their relationship for good after finally getting the clarity she needed from this experience.  


\-- --

[Epilogue]

1 Year later

Nicole gently stroked the side of Waverly’s face brushing away a small piece of long brown hair that had settled there and kissed her check, as they lay on the same starched blanket Waverly had taken out last year with Champ in the same fields surrounding the Earp land. A soft, gentle, warm breeze blew through the fields wrapping itself around her like a warm blanket; caressing her causing her hair to blow back over her face. For the first time in her life she felt truly content.

Waverly turned craning her neck to face Nicole taking in all of Nicole’s features, her cute little dimples, her chocolate brown eyes full of adoration staring back at her hazel orbs and finally that cute little mouth. Waverly leant in and kissed her softly.

“It’s a beautiful night out tonight,” Nicole said happily once they pulled apart.

“Just wait ‘til the stars come out,” Waverly countered softly.

“I don’t need the stars when I’ve got an angel,” Nicole said with an adoring smile.

They leaned in and kissed again. Then both lay back as the inky purple darkness of the night sky started to overtake the soft pink-red hues of the late evening.

“You know everyone says they always like the stars, but I prefer the constellations and the stories behind them myself,” Waverly admitted.

“Well I know about the Gemini twins and the plough but that’s about it,” Nicole offered up, “But we’ve got all night for you to educate me on the rest.”

Waverly smiled a big genuine smile.

“Well let’s start off with Orion the hunter…” Waverly said happily, as she pointed upwards towards the vague outline of his belt just coming into the view.

The constellations, had witnessed centuries and millennia’s pass now bared witness to this tiny moment in time.  
________________________________________

The Constellations are the connections between the stars, the stars exist but stars can die, they are ephemeral in the same way humans are. It is the connections we make between them that tell the story that story can be good or bad. I think every story matters even this one.

**Author's Note:**

> This is based off the game of the same name by Robert Yang.
> 
> The game is about two gay guys who are in a failing relationship. I thought it fit Waverly and Champ's relationship in Season 1 to a 'T'.
> 
> I recommend watching "Lump Plays," playthrough of this game on YouTube. In fact, the last sentence "I think every story matters even this one," is a quote they said whilst playing this game. I loved it and thought it made a great closing line to this story.
> 
> I've tried to capture Waverly and Champs' relationship and the emotions Waverly goes through within early in that season.


End file.
